Photo credit: RocketFAN

By Regan Bartel

Excelling on the ice and in the air

Rockets forward, the son of a helicopter parent

Sep 28, 2022 | 6:00 AM

The sky is the limit for Kelowna Rockets forward Max Graham – literally.

Born in Whitehorse, Yukon, the 18-year-old grew up around planes and helicopters.

“My dad was a bush pilot”, Graham tells RocketFAN. “He got a scholarship while playing hockey at Ohio State. While he was down there playing, he enrolled in the flight school.”

John Graham got his license and started a long career in the aviation industry.

“The best way to get a bunch of hours and fly lots was to head up north”, Max Graham continued. “You fly hunters in. You fly float planes and bush planes and anything you can.”

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Eventually, Graham Helicopters was formed, with three Bell LongRanger aircraft that can seat six people plus a pilot.

“He (dad) has been flying helicopters for 18 years. He does everything from forest fires to heli tours to animal surveys. Drying cherries is one of the main reasons he relocated his business to the Okanagan. It isn’t as volatile as waiting for forest fires. There is always going to be rain and cherries, so he was always going to be flying.”

It begs the question, is Graham interested in following his dad’s lead?

“I am working on getting my commercial license,” Graham said. “I am going to go through the ground school and then I have to acquire 100 hours with an instructor and then I will be licensed. It could be fewer hours if I go for just a private license, but for what I want to do, going for the commercial license is the right step if I want to eventually join my dad’s company”.

Graham admits it wasn’t a smooth takeoff to his WHL career. With his family moving around the province at a young age, he played minor hockey in nearby Merritt, where participation levels were low.

“I played with my sister, who is two years younger than me. The city has 7,000 people in it, so it was tough to pull a lot of kids to hockey. If you signed up, you were pretty much on the team”, Graham chuckled. “It was a pretty big jump moving here to Kelowna for my first year of bantam where there are tryouts and all sorts of teams”.

Never drafted by a WHL team, Graham was eventually listed by the Everett Silvertips and had a chance to play for the Tips during the abbreviated bubble season as a 16-year-old. A season later, he was traded to the Rockets in the Alex Swetlikoff deal.

“It was a good introduction to the league,” Graham admitted when speaking about the COVID season where teams were scheduled to play 24 games.

The well-spoken forward experienced more turbulence in his draft year. Despite being named by NHL Central Scouting as a possible 5^th and 6^th round prospect, teams elected not to choose him.

“Not getting picked in bantam, I worked hard and by 16 I was on a WHL team. I know the draft isn’t the be-all end-all, it is definitely important. I was a little disappointed, but the next day I got back to work, and I know I am eligible for two more years, so who knows what can happen?”

Scouts have a good idea of Graham’s weaknesses and strengths. RocketFAN asked to describe himself as a player.

“In this league, I’ve been a solid 200-foot player that has a bit of size and likes to go in the corner and lay hits. I would like to see some offense in my game this season. I want to be better at stickhandling, making quick plays, and getting lots of shots.”

When asked about playing in favourite arenas away from Prospera Place, Graham doesn’t hesitate on naming two.

“I love playing in Kamloops. It is a great rivalry. I really like playing in Everett. I had two goals in there last year. They got rid of me, and I like going back there and showing them up”.